Gorgeous Weekend!!

This weekend was quite jammed and crammed, but all and all a fantastic time! I was originally planning on going on a weekend escape with my best friends from college, but I have a huge research paper due so sadly couldn't partake!! But they had a great weekend and I cant wait to hear all the crazy stories (Happy Birthday Linds...I'm sure you celebrated your booty off!!)

Friday night, I met up with Ali and Annie after work and we went to Pearlz for happy hour.  We ended up getting homemade chips for 95 cents and these corn fritters, which I wouldn't recommend, for super cheap!! I am starting to love happy hour, allows a girl to go out and still stay on budget!

Ali, Me and Annie at Pearlz

Not the biggest fan of these guys, but they sure take a nice picture :)

After Pearlz, we decided to be tourist and get the free samples downtown.  I can't tell you how much I love living in a touristy place, because the free samples are everywhere and I definitely take advantage! We stopped at a couple different candy shops and got samples of fudge, gelato and my favorite pralines. I know it sounds a little creepy that I so frequently do this, but I'm a irregular customer too so I don't feel so bad (I do love a turtle or chocolate covered oreo)! 

Gotta love free samples!!

This weekend has been the random weekend in January where it is amazingly warm, seems like it happens every year!! I started off Saturday morning with a giant breakfast and a nice 5 mile run with Christina.  The weather was perfect and there were so many people walking around town.  The run felt awesome and it was nice actually being too hot in shorts and a t-shirt! After our run, Drew was taking his boat out for a nice cruise so Christina, Annie and I joined along. The forecast was 65 degrees with plenty of sunshine...which means a perfect January day for a boat ride (a little nippy but gorgeous)!

Christina, Me and Annie on the perfect day

Our captain!

The bridge from a water-view! So pretty!

Drew and Me looking like a patagonia ad!

My Saturday was filled with great weather, friends and amazing times! It was a little taste of the spring time, which I can't wait to finally be here.  I am a warm weather lover...I did move from the North down South as soon as I could choose where to live and will probably never leave! My night ended hanging out with a few friends and early to bed for this student.  Sunday was very boring, filled with a research paper and a break for a quick 6 mile run in the gorgeous 70 degree weather. Hope everyone had an amazing weekend and enjoyed the weather as much as I did (sorry mom, I know its still freezing up there)!

Saturday Night 

Pork, Pork and more Pork!

I was totally pumped for lunch today!! I made the rest of the pork butt from this weekend, which originally couldn't all fit into the crockpot! This time I put the crockpot on low (because it was much smaller portion) and cooked it for 6 hours rather than 4 and boy did the time difference make the meat fall off the bone!! It was amazing and basically shredded itself!  I decided to keep the pork "as is" because it was so moist and delicious without sauce.  The original recipe I made: I drenched the crockpot pork in BBQ sauce and put it in a cast iron skillet in the oven for 350 degrees. Either recipe makes amazing pulled pork!

I decided to use the pulled pork and make a huge salad. I put leftover avocado, leftover baked beans, the pulled pork on top of a mixed salad. It was a perfect meal after my 6 mile run this afternoon. Small detail...my mouth was watering my entire run anticipating the pulled pork! 

Amazing salad :)

Little midday snacky snack!

After class I took a little trip to Target, where I ended up staying for over an hour! How in the world does that always happen?!  I go in there for duck tape (dresser falling apart issue-yes pretty ghetto but resourceful I think) and come out over an hour later with these babies in my basket...

POPCHIPS

Popchips are one of my favorite snacks ever! I tried them for the first time this summer and ever since then whenever I go to target (or whenever I see them in a store) I always get them!  For 20 chips that taste like heaven they are only 120 calories...crazy! So I'd say it was quite the successful trip :)

Off to make some dinner and then go see No Strings Attached with Maggie!! I'm sooo excited I've been dying to see this movie ever since I saw the first commercial in like November :) 

Half Way to the Weekend!

Happy Hump Day!!! I woke up this morning with some great news my first class got cancelled! Classes never get cancelled, so I was super pumped to hear I got a few more minutes of z's this morning :)

After my hectic, work-filled day; I got treated to a home-cooked meal of chicken fried steak. I know not the healthiest but it sure was tasty! I made a big salad with avocado, tomatoes and mushrooms and some soy sauced sauteed mushrooms (say that ten times fast) to go with the steak.  It was the perfect amount of food, for once I wasn't stuffed when I finished dinner!

After dinner, we watched Twelve with Chase Crawford, 50 Cent and Emma Roberts.  It was a very intense movie about over privileged kids in NYC and their drug dealer.  I can't say that I would watch it again, but it's great if you like intense, indy flicks!

Dinner :)

Class being cancelled is much appreciated.  Now I have more time to get work done before class, so Ill be able to go on a longer run :)! Plus it looks like the rain is finally moving out, so I won't have an excuse to not run!  

Totals for this week: 14 on Sunday, 6 on Monday, Off on Tuesday, and scheduled to do 6-9 today plus workout video with Ali!! 

"First Class Cancelled Breakfast"

Off to eat my delicious pepper and onion omelet with the rest of the cinnamon bread :)

Rainy Tuesday with Toasty Bread!

This weekend was amazing and much needed! I had a kinda "me weekend" and ended up staying in for the majority of the weekend and getting a lot of R&R time :)!! On Sunday afternoon, I went for a solid 14 mile run which felt amazing.  My body definitely appreciated the rest which showed when I ran 14 mile in 2:11 without pacing! Christina and I were planning on running later in the afternoon, but the Charlotte trip took a toll on her and I had a bunch of work to do so wasn't dying to go back out and run...plus 14 miles is enough right?!

Sunday night, Drew made turkey burgers which were amazing (I thought it tasted a little like turkey meatloaf, which I was perfectly content with)! We watched The Town with Ben Affleck...it was an intense movie with a lot of gun shooting which Im not the biggest fan of, but still a good movie!! Im always impressed with Ben Affleck; I dont know how he can write, direct, produce and star in a movie (pretty impressive)!!

Monday morning, I woke up refreshed and ready for my day! I fixed an egg breakfast for myself while organizing my school schedule for the week.  I have a paper due the end of the week, so there is a lot of time management needed!  Plus the bachelor was on at night, so had to plan around quality tv time!

Fried eggs with peppers and bagel (the other half i made into a pbj)

Today, has been a very productive day of school work and eating cinnamon bread!! I made the cinnamon bread this weekend (allowed a day to rise) and it turned out amazing!  The bread is basically gone now, but its homemade so it should be healthier (right?!).  I have created my new favorite snack a Peanut Butter and Jelly in between two thick pieces of toasted cinnamon bread!! Soo tasty and the cinnamon adds a sweet touch to a classic comfort food, which equals the perfect snack for a rainy day :)

Swirly Cinnamon Bread :)

Tonight is consisting of doing a lot of school work and a late dinner :) At least I can look forward to a home-cooked meal after a long day!! 

Restful Weekend!!

FINALLY, I feel like myself again!!! I have been in a rot all week and really not feeling myself :(  I think last weekend really put a toll on me and getting back into the swing of classes just pushed me over the top. But after this relaxing weekend, I feel better and a ton less overwhelmed! I can't tell you how awful it is to be in a funk and not be able to get out...definitely appreciating my new (old) mood back!

Friday was a great start of the weekend.  My roomies and I went to Social for happy hour before splitting off to various Friday night activities.  It is so nice to be able to catch up with everyone, even for just a little bit, after hectic weeks at work or school!!  Plus, Social has amazing 3 dollar deals on wine and appetizers so it is the perfect place to meet up!

Happy Hour at Social

This weekend has been very relaxing and not too eventful (other then in the kitchen!).  When I get stressed or in weird moods; running and/or cooking really helps me de-stress! I ran and that didnt work; so I decided to go to the kitchen and cook.  What started out me baking an amazing cinnamon bread that I made this past Christmas; quickly turned into me making a full out BBQ dinner with homemade pulled pork, beans and homemade coleslaw, along with some of my favorite muffins ever banana strudel muffins! Needless to say, I have a fridge filled with food for the week :)

BBQ dinner...forgot to take a picture of my plate before I devoured it!

Homemade BBQ-I got to use the crockpot and my new cast iron skillet :)

Fresh muffins that turned into dessert!

Saturday afternoon flew by!! Ali and I ventured to Walmart, which I will hopefully never do again in the middle of the day on Saturday (seemed like everyone and their brother and second cousin was there)!! But shopping was fun, as always, and both of us ended up getting more than we originally entered the store for (but walmart has amazing prices on food so decided to stock up)! After we got home and the pork was in the crockpot, my bread was rising, and coleslaw was chilling; it was way too cold out and dark out to go for a run.  So we turned on ondemand (which we just learned we had) and did an exercise video in the living room!! I have never been a fan of exercise videos, but I tell you that video kicked my booty and my body all over is feeling it!

Ali doing the crazy exercise video

Me stretching it out!

Today is the big day though...a whole 16 miles!! Its nice waking up early so I wont be pressed for time, plus breaking it up to run with Christina will be a plus!! Off to eat one of these delicious muffins (breakfast all week is going to be amazing) and then getting on some warm clothes to run!! 

Happy Sunday :) 

TGIF

Happy Friday!! Whenever anyone says TGIF, it reminds me of watching all my favorite shows on Friday nights when I was younger (Boy Meets World, Home Improvement, and I don't remember the rest)!! Hope everyone is having a wonderful Friday...just a couple more hours until the weekend!! 

My Friday started off great with another 9 hours of sleep last night (don't remember the last time I got this much sleep in a week)!! After class I had a review session for a final exam and I learned what I had done wrong on my exam (which was a little upsetting realizing that one small mistake made a huge impact on my analysis and therefore my answer...resulting in my grade :( but there is always this semester)!!

I was a little down when I got home and thankfully Christina was home and listened to me vent (thanks a ton, I really appreciated it)!! We decided to take advantage of this beautiful and slightly chilly day, and go for a long walk!  It is nice living with 4 other people because there is almost always someone around and always something to do.  We walked the bridge ALL 5 miles of it and had a great chat along the way!! Its crazy how much faster time goes by when you are talking, rather than just running or walking by yourself.  After our walk, I was famished and decided to whip up breakfast for lunch!! Really any excuse for these bagels and I will make it!  

Bagel with eggs and vegs 

When we were on the walk, I decided my workout/running plan for the weekend!! I have a bunch of work to do, so unfortunately can't join my roomies on their Charlotte adventure this weekend, but that means that I still will be able to get my runs in (on the brightside)! Since Christina will be away for the weekend we decided that we will go on a 6 or 7 mile run in the late afternoon on Sunday when they get back...which will allow me to do a 9 or so mile run in the morning; giving me my 16 mile run for the weekend!! Im trying really hard to get these runs in and with the extra motivation of someone else running, I think I will succeed :) 

HAPPY START OF THE WEEKEND :) 

Loooong Week!

I have been feeling on the cusp of sickness and have been trying my hardest to prevent it!  After my long run on Monday, I really haven't gone on a run or worked out.  I was doing everything possible to motivate myself to get out and run, but nothing really worked (my body was telling me no)! I talked to my dad this morning who gave me great advice and told me to not worry about it.  I have just been getting back into the swing of things with school and running, which is putting a lot of pressure on me to do my best.   Sometimes too much pressure can lead to overexertion which can make you explode!! So I guess its good that I listened to my body and took it a little easy this week...no exploding for me thank you :)

Set out all my clothes for my run...which didnt happen :(

Today, I decided to get out of my rut (after getting 10+ hours of sleep yesterday) and get my running shoes back on! I woke up before my alarm clock, which never happens, and knew it was going to be a great day.  I made an amazing breakfast with these awesome bagels, alternative bagels, that only have 110 calories in them and 8g of fiber (basically a gift from God to me).  I highly recommend them to any bagel lover out there, plus they have a bunch of different flavors!  A great breakfast=great start of a day!

Egg sandwich with sausage 

As I was walking home from my first class, I walked passed filming for the Lifetime show Army Wives! I've seen the show a handful of times and its pretty good, but definitely awesome that they were filming right in front of my school!

It is a perfect day out (60-65 degrees) so I was even more determined to get my motivation back.  I decided to go for a 5 mile run, in shorts and a tshirt :) (love this weather)!  I wanted to do 6, but I had to go over an exam (thank goodness for curves in law school) so I cut it short a mile so I could get back to class on time while managing to make lunch! 

"Southwestern" salad 

I made a big salad with salsa, corn and my favorite beans. I love beans and basically anything that has beans on it I will love (strange but true)! You name it: black, pinto, garbanzo, refried, etc. I love it! My sister and I both have a similar love for beans and mexican food, so I will blame my parents for that one!  But if you have ever gone to a mexican restaurant with me I always have an order of beans on the side.  Needless to say, I loved my lunch!

Back to school for a quick seminar and then hopefully a relaxing night!! 

Happy MLK Jr. Day!!

My long run on Sunday...sadly didn't happen!  I have been having a lot of trouble motivating myself to run my scheduled long runs.  This is not new to me, as it happened to me training for the Disney Marathon last year.  Running such long distances is more a mental game than physical (lord knows hitting the wall at mile 22 and it is all mental).  I know that my body and legs can physically run 15 miles right now, but its hard to convince my mind to actually go out and run for 2+ hours.  

Even though my long run didn't happen, I had an amazing and brisk 6 mile run with Christina.  Christina just signed up for the half marathon in March!! It is awesome having a roommate that is training for a race at the same time, its definitely nice to have a running buddy and the added motivation to run is a huge plus :)!! We are planning on doing Sunday runs together, which will be her long runs and a nice break up for my planned long runs (hopefully a cure for my lack of motivation; run with Christina and then keep going for a few more miles)!!

As for today, I finally did a longesh run!! It felt amazing, my legs didnt hurt at all, and I even saw dolphins swimming!! It started to sprinkle at mile 6 and by mile 10 it was pouring...so I cut it a little short and finished with a solid 11 miles which I was happy about!! After my wet but refreshing run, I had a protein filled lunch and my favorite snack in the world while finishing Nanny Returns (the sequel of The Nanny Diaries)!

Shredded Chicken with Japanese Sauteed Vegetables 

Pretzels and Goldfish with Almond Butter :) aka most delicious snack ever!

Monday nights, my roomies and I have a tradition of cooking a "family dinner" and watching the bachelor or dancing with the stars (depending on which season is on).  Annie is our usual chef, but since she is out of town, our guest chef was Mary Foster!!  She did an awesome job and cooked an amazing and healthy version of chicken potpie with a cornbread crust and cheesy vegs on the side.  I have to get the recipe from her! The cornbread crust added a hint of sweetness and caused all of us to get seconds!!  

My dinner plate :)

For the rest of the night, watching the Bachelor, which is definitely a guilty pleasure, half the time we are making fun of it and the other half we are crying along with the girls!! Needless to say, can't wait to see who gets voted off (hopefully the crazy hairdresser!) 

Back to the Swing of Things!

This week has been crazy and apparently I am not the best blogger out there, I have a tendency to forget oops!! On Wednesday I baked the most amazing chocolate oatmeal cookies, from the betty crocker cookie book! The recipe is fantastic and uses a lot more oats than most oatmeal cookies call for, which I personally love.  While the cookies were baking, Ali and I watched Going the Distance with Drew Barrymore and Justin Long, it was one of the best romantic comedies I have seen in a while and highly recommend it for a lighthearted movie.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

Looks gross but the leftovers from Annie's Bday cake (marble)

On Thursday, I managed to squeeze in my 6 mile run between classes.  I think I'm going to like my new schedule, it allows for a nice break where I can actually be productive.  Thursday night, Drew and I went to Poogan's Porch downtown for an amazing pre-birthday dinner.  We had fried alligator and oysters for appetizers and I had their famous shrimp and grits and Drew had their pork chop with mac and cheese.  It was a very nice night, we rarely go out to eat so it was a nice change!

Friday morning was very hectic, I managed to put together a breakfast sandwich for breakfast as I ran out the door.  I used 1 egg and 1 egg white with a morningstar breakfast sausage, sandwiched between a sandwich thin (I was very impressed with how quickly I threw it together, but a luna bar wasn't going to cut it this morning).

Quick and Easy!

Friday, I decided to make a breakfast casserole for breakfast on Saturday.  My sister, Lee, made an amazing breakfast casserole over Christmas and I was dying to try out the recipe.  She used one from Cooking Light, but after some research online I decided to make my own breakfast casserole (not as healthy but still delicious).

All the ingredients 

Sourdough Boule, Egg mixture and Sausage

All together for an overnight soak :)

Recipe for Sausage Casserole:

1 small loaf of sourdough bread (cut in cubes)

1 cup of cheese

9 eggs

2 cups of milk

12 oz reduced fat pork sausage (or turkey sausage if you can find it)

Salt, pepper, and about 1 tsp of dry mustard

Line a greased pan with the bread

Combine the eggs, milk, salt, pepper, mustard together; then after combined add the cheese

Cook the sausage and sprinkle the sausage on top of the bread

Pour the combined egg concoction over the top

Cover, refridge overnight

Allow to sit for 30 minutes before putting it in the oven at 325-350 for 45 minutes

Enjoy :)

The casserole was perfect for Saturday morning (afternoon) and the boys all seemed to love it.  I love sourdough bread and it was 50% off so I decided it was fate and I should probably use it!  I have definitely been enjoying the leftovers today :).  I will definitely plan to make this again, its so easy and you can really adapt it to anyway you like it.  

Boys for Drew's Birthday night

Off to making a late dinner, need to carbo load for my long run tomorrow!! :) 

Back to School, Back to School....

My first day of class got cancelled on Monday because of the huge winter storm that has effected the south and is moving up to the north (my family is on the lookout!)!!! We only got rain and a little ice, but it was enough to shut down bridges and cancel the first day back :)!! It was a much appreciated break, even though I've been off for about a month, I was not in the mindset of school quite yet after my busy weekend and the extra day definitely helped!

This weekend my best friend since I was two, Paige, came to visit!! Paige and I drove down to see our other best friend, Laura!  After staying the night at Laura's house and hanging out with her incredible family (some of the sweetest people you will meet), the three of us ventured down to Savannah, GA for a day of being tourists (shopping, eating, picture taking, etc)!

Before heading off to Savannah

Our bucket of oysters (there were no survivors!) 

The girls posing with our glorious lunch :)

It was such a blast hanging with my best friends again and a perfect way to end my winter break!! The three of us always have a blast together (guess thats because we didn't kill each other after living together for over 2 years)!!

On Sunday it was my roommate, Annie's birthday (happy birthday again) and we had an amazing brunch to celebrate her special day!!  I haven't been one that usually gets dressed and ready to go to brunch on the weekends, but it was definitely a treat!! For dinner that night, Drew panfried duck wrapped in bacon with red beans and rice and vegetables.  He had just hunted (killed?) the duck the day before, so it was super fresh and very tender.  Thats what I get for dating a country boy :) Unfortunately, a combination of the brunch, a packed full weekend and my unmotivated attitude took me completely out of the mood to run (I was supposed to do my long 15 miler...oops)! But I made up for the lack of the run, and had a wonderful day with wonderful food and friends.

Monday, my day off of school, I decided to get back on training track by running (3 miles) and taking a bodypump class.  It was nice to get back to the gym after a few days being on hiatus! Followed by watching Inception (good but really long and you have to pay attention) and dinner with my roommates! Annie cooked an amazing and simple, not to mention cheap (2 dollars a person) baked potato with vegetable chili, definitely going to make that again!

My reading snack :) 

Today, I had my first day of class (woo woo)! I have an awkward schedule which allowed for me to be able to run 6 miles in between classes! No worries I still had time to shower before heading back :) On tap for tonight, figuring out what to cook for dinner and a couple wonderful hours of reading for class and maybe even squeezing watching the Social Network, which came to Redbox today!!

Sore sore day!!

My running plan for yesterday totally fell to pieces yesterday! I got all dressed and ready to go... stepped outside and it literally started raining on me the second I got outside...I took it as a sign to not run :)!  Instead I decided to try a bodypump class at Golds Gym.  I signed up for a free 7 day trial pass, so I could see if I liked the class before committing to a new membership.  I have heard so many good reviews of bodypump and I completely agree, it was an amazing total body workout!! Today I'm definitely feeling the aftereffects... my entire body is sore, even holding the phone to my ear is a struggle (maybe a little exaggeration but you get the point=awesome workout)! I will definitely be back for another class :) 

Today, Im going to attempt my 80 minute run again. Doesn't appear that it'll start pouring on me, but you never know! I'm going to take it really slow because I don't want to overdo it with all my new soreness and end up injured!! 

As for food yesterday, I was the master of grazing! I heated up some homemade black bean and bacon soup with a salad for lunch and dinner was a not so exciting sausage and egg sandwich...not to mention all the pretzels and peanut butter throughout the day (my favorite combo of all time)! 

Start of Hump Day!

Good morning!! For this morning for breakfast I started with my favorite oatmeal concoction! I love putting dry cereal, granola, dried fruit and almond or soy milk in my oatmeal, gives it a little kick, and I put all 4 in it today.

Some of the added contenders :)

As for the rest of yesterday, I went for a brisk 5 mile run.  It was supposed to be a 6 mile run, but my hip started throbbing (which was very unusual) so I cut down a mile.  It still felt amazing to get back to running after the weekend of welcoming the new year, where there was no way I was feeling up to running.  A bunch of my best friends from college came to visit and welcome the new year in together (can't tell you how much I miss these girls and for that matter college all together)!

Me (center) with the girls!

Off for a nice 80 minute run, hopefully the rain will hold off until I'm back :) 

Happy New Year

I have been obsessed with healthy living blogs for the past few months, so decided for the new year to dip my toes in and try it out.  I am training for my second full marathon on March 20 and thought that this was the perfect time to start blogging in order to keep me on track!
So a little about myself:
I am a current student who has a passion for food and running.  My dad is a crazy runner (ultramarathoner, etc.) and got me hooked on running after my freshman year of college.   For this girl it was the freshman 20 which I contribute to the lack of exercise, lack of sleep, intake of alcohol and not to mention the unlimited food plan! But after I came to realize that my rapid weight gain was a health issue, I started to run and the weight came off (slowly but surely).  After finishing my first half marathon my sophomore year of college, I became a lover of running and it quickly became part of my lifestyle.  To date, I have run many 10Ks, 10 milers, 4 half marathons and 1 marathon.

My dad and I running the Minneapolis Half Marathon (he kept going and finished the full)

My dad's girlfriend, Mimi; Dad, Me, and my sister, Lee at the end of the Disney Marathon

As for the food aspect, I blame all of my immediate family for the love of experiencing new flavors and recipes.  My mom was always an amazing cook, I remember coming home from school and seeing homemade pasta noodles hanging all over the kitchen.  My sister, Lee, and I always loved to help out in the kitchen and continue to share recipes with each other even though we live 100s of miles apart.  My dad and I learned to experiment with cooking and try out new flavors.  My dad and I learned how to cook together from the basics of baking a potato to now being able to cook an entire Christmas dinner!
Lastly, for the other big part that makes me me is the school aspect.  No one explains to you how much harder graduate school is from undergraduate school (little kept secret but so true).  I am a dedicated student and therefore the majority of my time is spent in school and the library :( but only a couple more years until the real world!

My Mom

My Dad

My sister, Lee; her boyfriend, Jeff and their puppy, Camden

Camden again :)

I absolutely love my life and am so blessed with all that I have.  I have wonderful, supportive, hilarious friends and family that make this life a joy everyday.  Hope you enjoy reading this blog and I'll try not to bore you too much :)